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Clinton Stresses Pakistan Cooperation After bin Laden Killing

David Gollust | Washington May 02, 2011

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is stressing the need for continued U.S.-Pakistani security cooperation after the killing of Osama bin Laden by a U.S. forces team near Islamabad. She said the message to the Taliban is that it cannot defeat or wait out U.S. and allied forces in Afghanistan.

Bin Laden’s killing by a U.S. military team on Pakistani soil creates new sensitivities in an already delicate relationship, and in her first public comments on the issue, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton stressed the need for continued U.S. partnership with Pakistan.

While avoiding mention of U.S.-Pakistani cooperation, if any, in the operation by an elite U.S. Navy Seal team, the Secretary of State said regional partnerships, including close U.S. cooperation with Pakistan, helped put “unprecedented pressure” on al-Qaida and its leadership.

She said continued cooperation in the days ahead will be just as important, since the battle with al-Qaida’s “syndicate of terror” will not end with bin Laden’s death.

“Bin Laden had also declared war on Pakistan. He had ordered the killings of many innocent Pakistan men, women and children. In recent years, the cooperation between our governments, militaries and law enforcement agencies increased pressure on al-Qaida and the Taliban. And this progress must continue. And we are committed to our partnership.”

Clinton said the United States and its allies will continue taking the fight to al-Qaida and its Taliban allies in Afghanistan while seeking to build a stronger government in Kabul.

She said the message to the Taliban of the latest turn of events is that it must end its association with terrorism and join Kabul authorities in an Afghan political process.

“We are supporting an Afghan-led political process that seeks to isolate al-Qaida and end the insurgency. Our message to the Taliban remains the same. But today it may have even greater resonance. You cannot wait us out. You cannot defeat us. But you can make the choice to abandon al-Qaida and participate in a peaceful political process.”

Secretary Clinton noted bin Laden’s death came amid the “Arab Spring” political upheaval in the Middle East and North Africa in which she said democracy protesters are rejecting “extremist narratives” and seeking peaceful progress based on universal rights. She said there is no better rebuke to al-Qaida and its heinous ideology.

Earlier, the State Department issued a world-wide travel alert advising Americans abroad of an “enhanced potential” for anti-U.S. violence following the bin Laden killing. It urged U.S. citizens in areas of potential trouble to limit travel outside of their homes or hotels and avoid mass gatherings and demonstrations.